View as a webpage  /  Share

Richfield Business Bulletin

SUMMER 2024

Bolstering Economic Growth in Richfield

Veterans Park, Wood Lake Nature Center, and the Richfield Community Center offer amenities and programs that draw in thousands of visitors to our city each year, helping bolster our local economy. Despite regular maintenance, these heavily used facilities are in critical need of reinvestment to continue serving our residents and visitors.

The city has proposed an $80 million investment plan, called “Our Legacy, Our Future,” to fund new facilities, renovations, and amenities at these three major destinations. To help finance this plan, the city is seeking voter approval to utilize a half-percent local sales and use tax to collect up to $65 million over the next 20 years. If voters approve the sales tax this November, Richfield residents would pay for roughly one-third of the investment plan, with over $50 million coming from the nonresident local sales tax contributions and state and federal funding that has already been secured. 

Several communities in the Twin Cities and across the state have enacted local option sales taxes to support important community investments. The University of Minnesota found little impact on overall sales growth. Local sales tax collections stay local instead of being sent to the state, meaning local business owners and residents benefit from the improvements that are made. 

Protect your property and your peace of mind during an emergency

Do you have a KnoxBox installed at your business? A KnoxBox, also known as a Knox Rapid Access System, is a secure, rapid-entry key box system that allows fire departments and emergency responders immediate access to a building in an emergency, where seconds count!

If you have a KnoxBox installed at your business:

• Be sure you have current keys in the box! If you are unsure, the fire department can open the KnoxBox for you to verify.
• If you have a fire alarm, provide updated contact information to your alarm company.
  Emergencies often happen overnight! Update the fire department with after-hours contact information.
• Invite the fire department to complete a fire pre-plan where your site can be visited during a non-emergency situation to mark and label critical areas of your property for use during an emergency.

Don't have a KnoxBox? Here's why you should consider getting one:

• Rapid Emergency Access: Eliminate barriers and allow first responders to quickly gain access to secured properties when time matters most.
• Protection: Protect property, inventory, and thousands of dollars in investments from fire and water damage by providing rapid emergency access to first responders.
• Cost: Eliminate costly repair from forced entry with Knox's one-time, low-cost investment.
• Low Maintenance: All products are built Knox-Rugged to require little maintenance and retain their operational integrity even under extreme weather conditions.
• Security: The KnoxBox is designed to be highly secure, reducing the risk of unauthorized access. The fire department has the authority to access your Knox products.

Knowing that emergency responders can quickly and safely enter the building provides business owners and employees peace of mind. Together, we can work for rapid access during an emergency and prevent property loss.

For more information, please contact Assistant Fire Chief Jenell Brooks at 612-243-4501 or by email. 

Richfield Provides Rebates to Local Businesses for Energy Efficiency Upgrades

Are you looking to save money on your utility bills? The Richfield Energy Efficient Business Rebate Program can help!

The City of Richfield offers rebates to eligible local businesses that make energy efficiency upgrades through programs from the Center for Energy and Environment (CEE). CEE will provide your business with a free energy assessment with recommendations and estimated energy savings, will help with bids or finding a contractor, and will even complete and submit all rebate paperwork for you.

Richfield provides bonus rebates that cover 20% of the cost (up to $2,500) of eligible lighting, HVAC, or refrigeration upgrades, on top of other regular program rebates. 

Save money on your trash bill with Waste Wise Waste Wise helps Minnesota businesses find ways to improve recycling, reduce waste, and save money.  Businesses have saved thousands of dollars per year by improving their waste management, recycling, and organics systems.

A site visit from a Waste Wise expert is a quick and easy way to identify projects that will help your business reduce waste and save money.  Plus, Waste Wise services are free for businesses in Hennepin County!

Business certification Applying for certifications like Minority-Owned Business Enterprises (MBE), Women-Owned Business Enterprises (WBE), Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE), and Emerging Small Business Enterprises (ESBE) offers specialized financial benefits and connects you to a network of entrepreneurs.

Certified businesses gain visibility in state and local directories, access to grants, and invitations to specialty events with other certified business owners. These certifications are especially valuable for businesses operating locally and at the state level.

Not sure where to start? Through the Elevate Hennepin platform, schedule a meeting with a Business Navigator and get connected to an advisor who can guide you through the process and determine your eligibility.

Small business owners needed for focus groups

Researchers at the University of Minnesota and Michigan State University will hold multiple focus groups with small business owners in the Twin Cities on August 6 and 7. Participants will take part in discussions about the local business environment and business-community relationships. Researchers are especially interested in customer-facing businesses with fewer than 150 employees. Focus groups will be roughly 90 minutes long and held at Carlson School of Management, in groups of eight to ten small business owners.  Time slots are available on Tuesday, August 6 and Wednesday, August 7. A limited number of Zoom slots may also be available. Participants will be compensated with a $75 gift card. Parking costs will be covered, and refreshments will be provided.  The researchers will ensure that everything you say in the focus group will be kept confidential and anonymized unless you explicitly say otherwise.

Federal Reserve Business Survey

How is the economy affecting your business?

Businesses today face a multitude of challenges. To help understand these challenges, the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis is partnering with chambers of commerce, economic development associations, and other organizations on a survey of businesses across Ninth District states (MN, MT, ND, SD, WI, UP/MI).

Please take this 7-minute survey to help the Minneapolis Fed and local partners understand the impact that the economy is having on your business. Results are shared with the partners who sent you this survey and they can share results with you once the survey is closed. Results are also shared with the general public.

All responses are confidential. To maintain confidentiality, please do not include any self-identifying information in any comments. If you get this survey from multiple sources, please respond to the survey only once.

Please respond by July 29. The Minneapolis Fed greatly appreciates your time and valuable insight.

Food Industry Survey Share your experience with wasted food Hennepin County is looking for comments from businesses to better understand the issue of food waste to develop effective strategies to reduce the top sources of human-made greenhouse gasses.

The county is interested in learning what types of wasted food your business produces, what sorts of practices are currently implemented to reduce wasted food, and what resources may be beneficial to you.

Please complete a brief survey about your current kitchen and serving practices to help inform the Hennepin County Food Waste Prevention Plan.

Hennepin County appreciates your time and participation!

Road construction news

Photo by Elia Ayaz (MnDOT Design-Build Verification Team)

Construction of the I-494/I-35W interchange is moving ahead at full steam

There will be ramp and lane closures throughout the summers of 2024, 2025, and 2026 to accommodate construction. Currently, the loops in the northwest, southwest, and southeast corners of the interchange are closed, along with the ramp from Penn Avenue to EB I-494.

The best way to stay up to date with closures is to subscribe to MnDOT’s project emails at their project website. Any questions about project timelines or impacts can be directed to MnDOT via their project email or their hotline at 651-583-6435.

Nicollet Avenue reconstruction project

Hennepin County will be reconstructing Nicollet Avenue from just north of 77th Street to just south of 66th Street beginning in 2026. Construction is expected to last through 2027.

The initial project concept was displayed to the public for the first time at an Open House on July 10th. More information on the project background can be found on the County’s project website. Pictures and descriptions of the project concept can be found at the project’s online engagement website. 

Any questions not addressed at the linked websites can be sent to either the County’s project manager Matt Huggins or Richfield Transportation Engineer Matt Hardegger.

Questions, comments, feedback? We'd love to hear your thoughts, ideas, and suggestions for future issues of the Richfield Business Bulletin. Please email Jan Youngquist, Richfield Economic Development Manager or call 612-861-9771.

Customize your city news!

Would you like to receive news from other city departments? Customize your subscriptions now to include text messaging, and customized delivery of various city newsletters.